Monday, October 05, 2009

In my last post, I mentioned the problem that I had with the Slanting Gretel Tee. I finally decided to follow the pattern & knit the sleeves as instructed. I am glad that I did as I am happy with the finished product ......

It looks great (Lydia is the model) & fits perfectly. I love the color & the feel of the yarn - it's Handmaiden Casbah (Salt Spray) which is gorgeous to knit with & I use only 2 skeins !

I am also glad that I followed the instructions for the cap sleeves which turned out perfect. As the sleeves were not knitted in the round, there is less bulk on the underarm & feels so much more comfortable .......

This pattern is really well written & clever as the shaping is done at the back. The only change I made is to have the same cables on both the front & the back of the raglan yoke which I think looks more balanced .....

I am so glad that I picked this project up again & finished it. It just perfect for the spring weather & I have already worn it a couple of times.

I have also cast off another project which is a Christmas present for Lydia's piano teacher. This is the only knitted Christmas gift for this year as I don't have much time from now to Christmas for more knitting (as I am working on a couple of secret projects).

This is the 2nd Ishbel that I have knitted & I still love the pattern - it's a quick & easy lace shawl ......

.... all done in less than a week. This Ishbel is knitted in Zen Yarn Garden Sea Wool in a Passion Pink colorway. The yarn is from stash & one of the many skeins that I had when I was in the Sock Club.

This time, I did something different - I added beads on the edging & it looked great .....

The beads do add a nice touch to the shawl but it slowed down the knitting - pick up the crochet hook, pick up the bead with the hook, pull the stitch thro' the bead, put the stitch back on the needle & then knit the stitch! I don't think I can go on doing this for a long time & I am glad that the edging is only 8 rows & I had beads on 3 rows!